ChocoSol

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November 12, 2020 By Mike & Mike's Staff

ChocoSol is a business-social enterprise transforming theobroma cacao

-The Food of the Gods-

into revolutionary and artisanal dark chocolate.

Good for Mind, Body and Soil

Since the beginning, Chocosol has been working directly with farmers and co-operatives, putting money into the hands of community members.
Chocosol’s bean-to-bar chocolate is made in Toronto from scratch, using only simple, whole-food ingredients.
All of the products are free of nuts, dairy, soy, gluten, and preservatives. From biodegradable packaging, support for neighbourhood farmers’ markets, cradle-to-cradle production practices, and bicycle-power local deliveries!

Origins

The concept of ChocoSol was originally founded in 2004 in Oaxaca, Mexico, by Michael Sacco, and has been based in Toronto since 2006. The origin of the Chocosol name has links to 3 languages: English, Spanish, and French. ‘Sol’ is from the Spanish word for ‘sun’ and refers to our first 1,000 kilograms of cacao that were roasted with solar power in Oaxaca. In French, ‘sol’ means soil, acknowledging that you must have the soil of the gods in order to have the food of the gods. In English ‘soul’ reminds us of the importance of conducting our work with a good mind and spirit.

Chocosol Dark Chocolate

Made Bean to Bar

Chocosol makes chocolate from scratch and is in control of each step of the process- from building long-term relationships with the farmers we work with around the world, direct-purchase and direct-trade sourcing practices- all the way to the chocolate making itself. They take raw cacao beans and roast, winnow, and grind them into chocolate all in their production kitchen in Toronto, Ontario.

Stone Ground

Since the beginning, we have used volcanic stone-wheels instead of industrial steel to grind our cacao into chocolate. This is a more rustic approach, resulting in chocolate more richly textured than most commercial chocolate bars, making a bite of our dark chocolate an unforgettably rich and full experience. This method also means our chocolate retains more of the nutritional benefits of cacao- antioxidants, iron, magnesium, and much more.

Nutritious & Delicious

One of our missions is to re-introduce the pleasure of simple, dark chocolate to a world full of candy bars. All of our chocolates range between 65% to 100% cacao content, are low-sugar, and are free of dairy, soy, gluten, nuts, preservatives, fillers, and artificial flavours. We only use simple, whole-food ingredients to change the flavour and texture of our chocolate bars- ingredients like raw vanilla pods, coconut butter, and dried chilis.

Sourcing

Mexico

Chocosol has been working with a group of communities in the Lacandona Jungle of southern Chiapas, Mexico, for over 10 years. One of our longest standing relationships, ChocoSol directly purchases cacao from 3 villages in the region. The cacao is first consolidated and tested for quality control by village elder, Don Flor, and his family. This community and family is also our home-base for many of our cacao fermentation experiments, such as the 2018 limited edition guanabana-infused fermentation!

Ecuador

ChocoSol sources cacao from Kallari, a co-operative organisation made of and made for small-scale cacao Amazonian producers in Ecuador. The organisation spans 144 communities and over 2,800 families in the Tena, Archidona, Arosemena, Tola, and Napo provinces. Kallari is dedicated to being 100% Kichwa owned and operated, preserving local and endemic cacao varieties, and the unique terroir of the regions. The production is selected from the best chakras (garden lots) in the area, and the organisation works with its members to ensure that the cocoa has been grown organically.

The Dominican Republic

In 2014, ChocoSol began sourcing cacao beans from the Zorzal private reserve in the Dominican Republic. This cacao is grown on a 1,019 acre bird sanctuary and organic cacao demonstration farm in the northern mountain range of the Dominican Republic. A key species of birds that makes use of the sanctuary is the endangered Bicknell’s Thrush (Zorzal de Bicknell), a rare migratory songbird native to Quebec and Vermont.
Nestled in the heart of the cacao rich Duarte province in the Dominican Republic is Öko-Caribe. With more than 50 years of combined experience in cacao, owners Adriano de Jesus Rodriguez and Gualberto Acebey Torrejon have fine-tuned their systems to ensure consistent, superior quality in their production. Öko Caribe maintains close relationships with its 165 farmers through technical training, in agronomic practices and organic certification. In addition, owners Adriano and Gualberto have personal relationships with all farmers, offering microfinance loans for cacao-related expenses, as well as personal loans for family emergencies or other community needs.

Guatemala

Izabal Agro-Forest, S.A. (IAF) is an award-winning farm and timberland management company headquartered in Guatemala. Agro-forestry is an integrated approach of using the interactive benefits from combining trees and shrubs with crops, including cacao. IAF is constantly conducting research and development around innovative techniques and approaches to boost ecosystem services, deepen positive social impacts, and increase operational efficiencies. They strive to offer alternatives to tropical monoculture that contribute to the restoration of natural capital. In recent years the project has essentially double cropped the land with heirloom, specialty and aromatic cacao.

Images (left to right, top to bottom): Izabal Agro-Forest, S.A. (IAF) in Guatemala; Zorzal private reserve in the Dominican Republic; Kallari, a co-operative organisation in Ecuador; Chinantla of Oaxaca, Mexico.

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